Substantially homogeneous prior art drop cookies can be made by using a rotary molder. Typically, a rotary molder has a movable first belt or drum that contains cavities of the final cookie's desired shape. At one point in the motion of the first belt or drum, the cavities are filled with cookie dough of the desired formulation. Further travel of the belt or drum transfers the dough by preferential adherence to a second moving belt or band that is in contact with or in close proximity to the first belt or drum. Thereafter, the dough is conveyed through a continuous oven and baked.
In the manufacture of other prior at cookies, substantially homogeneous dough is deposited directly on the moving belt or band by extruding discrete deposits of the substantially homogeneous dough via extrusion dies of the desired shape. Still other prior art cookies comprised of substantially homogeneous dough are made by such processes as extrusion or by forming a sheet of dough from which the desired shapes are cut. It is also known in the art to make cookies by laminating already baked cookie portions with fillings, icings, marshmallow creme, and the like.
In the past, a wide variety of equipment has been utilized in practicing these manufacturing processes. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 1,948,870, issued Feb. 27, 1934, and U.S. Pat. No. 1,970,336, issued Aug. 14, 1934, both issued to Pointon and Harber and assigned to Baker Perkins Co., Inc., are directed to dough forming apparatus comprised of open top cups or rings that move in an orbital path to form a dough piece that is confined therein. A stated objective is to mold the dough pieces into a spherical shape by giving rows of molding cups or rings an orbital balling movement of variable amplitude about the axis of each cup. A support surface for the dough pieces is positioned opposite the molding rings and can be periodically advanced stepwise so that dough pieces rolled by one row of cups or rings are in position for treatment by the next row of cups or rings.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,225,714, issued Dec. 28, 1965 to Gaskell discloses improved molding rings and closed top cups for use in forming dough products. The cups appear to be intended for use on apparatus of the type generally disclosed in the Pointon et al. patents. The cups are provided with dough-working ribs that have a substantial axial directional component and provide undulations that are so shaped as to knead or work a dough piece as the cups are moved in a gyratory motion. According to Gaskell, the gyratory motion and the cup's internal taper urge the dough downwardly onto the conveyor so as to assure its effective molding adhesion thereto, while the ribs on the interior of the cup work over the external surface of the dough and create air spaces between the dough and the ribs. These air spaces help in reducing the tendency of the dough to stick to the mold. A multiple cup unit for carrying a plurality of detachable cups of various sizes is also described.
While it is clear from the foregoing references that various apparatus for rolling pieces of dough-like product are generally known in the art, it is significant that none of the foregoing references are directed to rolling a dough piece wherein the objective is to simulate drop cookies that are made by for example, a rotary molder. It is also significant that none of the foregoing references ae directed to laminated products comprised of at least two distinct types of dough, wherein the objective is to substantially and uniformly encapsulate an inner dough portion within a distinct outer dough portion. In addition, none of the foregoing references disclose rolling such a multi-dough structure that contains flavored chips or other morsels to thereby control the visibility, appearance, and distribution of the chips in the baked product.
European Patent Application No. 31,718, Hong and Brabbs, filed Dec. 23, 1980 and published July 8, 1981, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference, describes the manufacture of laminated cookies wherein different doughs are combined to produce a product whose long-term texture mimics that of freshly baked cookies. The cookies are made from laminated dough structures formed by a variety of methods. These methods include (1) encapsulating an inner dough within a distinct outer dough by hand crimping discs of outer dough around a ball of inner dough, (2) layering sheets of two or more alternating doughs that have been previously cut to the appropriate size, (3) alternately layering large sheets of two or more different doughs followed by cutting the resultant structure into pieces, (4) laminating one or more doughs onto the top of, or a portion of the top of, a distinct dough (5) embedding particles of one or more doughs into a distinct dough, (6) winding strands of one or more doughs onto the surface of a ball of a distinct dough, (7) laminating alternating sheets of two or more doughs, rolling, and slicing, or (8) using an encrusting machine, such as a Rheon.RTM. Model 207 available from Rheon USA of Paramus, N.J., to simultaneously and concentrically co-extrude an inner dough and a distinct outer dough whereby the outer dough wraps around the inner dough.
It has been discovered that rolling the laminated dough structures formed by such laminating methods prior to baking substantially eliminates crisp edges and results in cookies of superior overall appearance and quality, particularly when the method used to form the dough preform does not form the laminated dough into a ball. Particularly noticeable improvements have been observed when the methods used to make the laminate dough preforms include, for example: co-extruding the doughs in a continuous form and thereafter cutting the co-extruded dough to yield rectangular segments or other shapes which are non-spherical or non-hemispherical in shape; a sheet/deposit/sheet/cut method wherein a multi-layer dough structure is cut from a laminated structure comprised of a first layer of dough upon which inner dough pieces are deposited and thereafter covered with a second sheet of the first or a third dough; and other equivalent processes that generate a laminate structure having a non-hemispherical or non-spherical shape.
It has been discovered that cookies of the Hong and Brabbs type made from processes generating non-spherical laminate dough pieces have different baking dynamics than cookies of the Hong and Brabbs type with spherical laminate dough pieces. In the case of Hong and Brabbs non-spherical laminate dough pieces, the resultant cookie typically has an undesirable thin, crisp, and dark outer edge. This undesirable edge is primarily due to the finite amount of perimeter space that is required to seal the outer dough around the inner dough. A lack of inner dough at the edges where the outer dough sheets meet and seal can also cause the baked cookie to have a thin, crisp, and dark edge. Likewise, a lack of inner dough in the corners of dough pieces of rectangular or other geometric shapes yields the same undesirable result. These thin, crisp edges contribute to product breakage and reduced consumer acceptance. At the same time, the use of some of the laminating processes described earlier herein can result in decreased visibility on the surface of the finished product of chips or morsels contained in the inner dough. This also contributes to reduced consumer acceptance.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to make a high quality, simulated drop cookie from a plurality of laminated doughs made by a sheet/deposit/sheet/cut method.
A further object of the present invention is to prevent the formation of an undesirable crisp, thin, and dark edge on a laminated cookie.
A further object of the present invention is to roll a laminated dough piece whereby the inner dough is substantially and uniformly encapsulated within a distinct outer dough.
A further object of the present invention is to control the degree of visibility and distribution of flavored chips or other morsels in a baked product.
These and other objects of the present invention will be evident from the following disclosure: